Gum Drops
by Ad Astra Per Alia Porci
Summary: Complete! NS. The great thing about rumours is that there's usually very little truth to them. A new take on episode 6.05: Gum Drops. Look up spoilers on the Playing With Fire GS site.
1. Greg the growling chainsaw

A/N: It's my goal to finish this before the episode airs. Let's see if I can make this dead line. I already have two more chapter's ready, but I won't post them just yet so that the updates can be more even. Now I know this opening doesn't seem like a Snicker's story, but it will be.Look at my other CSI stories: I'm all about Nick.This is my take on episode 6.05. I hope you like it. Long live Snickers.

* * *

_"Come on; a little more. You can do it… come on," Grissom cooed as he leaned forward slowly. Then with unexpected speed, his hands shot forward and encased the creature crawling before him in a clear container. "Gotcha!" he cried triumphantly. He skilfully flicked the container so that he could move the insect away from the tree it had been climbing up. "Magnificent," Grissom breathed excitedly as he brought the plastic up to his face for a closer inspection._

_As his scrutinizing gaze travelled over the length of the bug for the fourth time a satisfactory smile crept past his lips. "I don't know you," he whispered to the trapped insect, "That must mean you're a new spec--"_

_"Grrrrrrraaaargh." Grissom was cut off as a growl sounded from somewhere nearby. He pulled his eyes away from his treasure and glanced nervously at the undergrowth surrounding him; whatever animal had made that noise had a million places to hide. He immediately wished he hadn't been such a jerk to what's-his-face back in the village, that tour-guide would be pretty handy right now._

_Grissom quickly and quietly began gathering his things, starting by closing his insect discovery in the specimen jar. He shoved his stray items back into his pack and slung it over his shoulder. With another brief survey of the area Grissom began carving a new path through the foliage to get out if the forest and back to safety. He hadn't made it three feet before another chilling growl broke the peaceful nature calls around him; only this time it sounded a lot closer. Startled, Grissom whirled around and opened his eyes wide only to come face-to-face with…_

"Greg?" the nightshift supervisor mumbled sleepily as he recognized the face beside him. In the limited sunlight spilling through the curtains next to his bed, Grissom could barely make out the image of his young protégé snoring ferociously in a bed a little more than an arm's length away. Grissom rolled onto his back and scratched his salt-and-peppered hairline as he tried to remember why he was in a strange room with the former lab-tech. "Oh right. The McDermott's," a frown flickered across his face as the grisly images of the case replaced the dreamy ones of discovering a new species of bugs. He reached down to his left wrist and felt for the proper buttons on his watch to activate the "indiglow" feature. He'd barely been asleep for an hour. Grissom groaned and rolled over, squishing the pillow more firmly to his head to try and filter out some of Greg's snoring.

He laid there for five full minutes before switching positions so that his head was buried by pillows and covers. It didn't make much of a difference. For such a little guy, Greg had quite the sinuses. Racking his brain, Grissom recalled an article he had read once about tips to get your partner to stop snoring… and yes, it was from a woman's magazine, but it was only because the reception area at his dentist's office didn't have any forensic journals.

There were only two out of the seven tips that he could remember: elevate the head and turn the offender from his back onto his side. _'Or was it turn him from his side onto his back?'_ Grissom questioned silently. A quick glance at his roommate showed that Greg was currently lying on his back so Grissom decided to follow his initial thought. He lazily slunk out of his bed, shivering slightly as he left the warmth of his comforter in exchange for the air-conditioned atmosphere, and ambled over to Greg's bed. Carefully, the older man arranged the pillows beneath the blonde's head so that his head was higher up. The snoring dimmed but did not disappear completely. Encouraged by this partial success, Grissom continued. He gently and slowly gripped Greg's furthest shoulder and pulled the former lab-tech until Greg was on his side. The awful roar silenced in his throat and a Grissom smirked triumphantly before crawling back into his own bed to get some more sleep.

It took him a few minutes to banish the thoughts of the poor slain family member's from his head, but then Grissom fell back into another dream of entomological achievement… only this time he was chased out of the forest by a Jason-esque character wielding a chainsaw. As Grissom slowly regained his wits about him, he realized the chainsaw was really Greg Sander's attempt at breathing; he cursed quietly.

He reached down once more, lighting up his wrist-watch. He started at the face for a moment in disbelieve; if it weren't a digital read-out he'd swear he was seeing it wrong. He had only been asleep for ten minutes. "Stupid wives' tales," he grumbled. "I know how to stop the snoring." Grissom once more abandoned his bed and walked towards the young man sleeping in the adjacent bed. "Greg," he commanded in a normal voice. No response. "Greg!" He raise the volume a little, sounding more stern and intimidating but not angry just yet. Again, the effort went unrewarded. "GREG!" he shouted, leaning closer to the man. Nothing. "What's wrong with this kid?" Grissom muttered as he reached forward and gave his worker a hardy shake. Still Greg snored away peacefully. Apparently, he was a _deep_ sleeper.

Grissom headed back to his own bed, deciding to try to ignore it once more. That plan lasted for another five minutes before it too was discarded. Grissom was a patient man, but not _that_ patient. "This is ridiculous," he growled in frustration as a new plan formed in his mind. He got up out of his bed, tucked a pillow under his arm and slipped on his shoes. After scanning his attire to make sure he wouldn't embarrass himself, he wandered out of the room and into the bright sunlight. He walked to the room next door and knocked firmly.

Less than a minute later, noises, mainly sounds of stumbling and curses, were heard from within. Grissom waited patiently as they drew nearer the door. Finally, the door peaked open slightly, revealing the dishevelled and squinty-eyed right half of Sara Sidle's face. "Gris?" she questioned as her barely opened eye attempted to focus in the harsh light from outside.

"Hey," he greeted softly. "Want a roommate?" he held up his pillow questioningly.


	2. A new year and a new Sara Sidle

A/N: Wow, thanks for the reviews! I think those are the quickest, and most, that I've ever gotten from a first chapter. Now unfortunately, I will have to disappoint most of you, Nick is not **still** in the room when Grissom shows up. The rare bit of truth in this rumour is that Gris did, in fact,** sleep** in the same room as Sara. That is what apparently will happen in the show, and thus what I have made happen here. I just chose to change the meaning of it… but you'll see that next chapter if you kindly decide to stay tuned. Thanks again for the great response. Hope I live up to your expectations.

* * *

"Huh?" Sara croaked out intelligently.

"I know that it's against company policy… but Greg-the-motor has been snoring _all_ night and rumour has it that you have an extra bed," he concluded quickly, fidgeting with his glasses. He waited in vain for a response. "Sara?"

"Yeah?" she was completely out of it. _'What's he yammering on about?' _she grumbled internally.

Grissom decided on a new, direct tactic. "Can I sleep here tonight?"

"Oh," she replied, finally understanding his request. "Yeah, sure," she granted as she walked away from the opening. Sara didn't care, she just wanted to go back to sleep. She pulled the door slightly as she moved away so it would open wider to permit him entrance.

Sara smiled tiredly as she walked a careful distance around the dresser sitting in the middle of the room with the television on it, knowing that its placement had just won her a free meal or some sort of present; she had collided with it on her way to answer the door. Now she was looking forward to tomorrow when something would brush against her hip, and consequently the bruise which she could already feel forming, and she would remember the collision and be able to guilt Nick into doing something for her. After all, it was his bright idea to pull the damn thing away from the wall so that they could see the show better. Then, by the time he left, he was too tired to move it so his next idea was to leave it there until the morning when he would come back and replace it. Yup, she was definitely getting something nice out of this.

Shortly after they had checked into their rooms, the Texan had shown up at her door with a sheepish expression, looking for some temporary shelter. Apparently Warrick was on the phone with Tina and Nick felt uncomfortable listening in. "…you know how honey-mooners are… it's really disturbing to hear Warrick talking like that when I'm the only one in the room," he had explained with shudder. So they had ended up lying together on Sara's bed watching _"How It's Made"_ on the discovery channel for almost an hour; but when Nick noticed Sara falling asleep he decided it was time to head back to his own room, much to her disappointment..

Without looking back at Grissom, Sara crept back to her warm bed and snuggled up to the pillow that still smelled like Nick. "Thanks Sara," Grissom smiled slightly, though it was wasted on Sara's shut eyes, as he closed the door behind him. "You have no idea how grateful I am for this." He waddled over to the spare bed and began to settle himself in.

"Don't mention it," she mumbled into her pillow as she held it tighter. In her drowsy state she didn't _really_ understand why he was here, something about Greg, but she didn't really care either. It's not like it was a big deal anyway. They were both adults, in separate beds, and the only activity they'd be participating in was sleeping… separately. Admittedly, a couple years ago this proximity would have caused her a fairly sleepless night, but luckily this was a new year and a new Sara Sidle.

In her last conscious moments, Sara reflected on her relationship with her boss. A proud smile flitted across her face as she analyzed the last year in particular. With the catalyst of her would-be drunk driving and some clarity provided by her counsellor, Sara felt confident that her relationship with Grissom was finally on its way back to normal. It had taken her a few sessions to realize that her fixation on him had more to do with her sketchy background and feelings of inadequacy than it did with actual romance. She had sought out the love of a superior so that she would feel special; she was just thankful she had transferred to Gris' team rather than stayed under Mike's leadership in Seattle… she probably could have gotten him and then when the relationship hadn't provided what she was looking for it would have just made a mess of things.

She didn't resent Gris anymore for rejecting her so coldly; it actually was for the best. And now that she realized that, they could move back into the friendship that existed originally. Her life was finally back under her control and she was even considering making a drastic move with her love life soon – another thing that the last year had provided clarity to, though that catalyst was Walter Gordon. Now she was just waiting for some indication that: A, he'd want to be in a relationship with her, and B, that he was ready for one. Before she could cognitively develop that thought any further, she was pulled into a dream that would do it for her.

Grissom watched her as her breathing evened out and a tiny smile graced her face. She looked so peaceful and happy and relaxed. He felt his heart swell with pride. He knew it wasn't his place, but was so proud of her; of all that she had accomplished recently. Not only had she seemed to sort out most of her own demons, but she had become instrumental in helping Nick battle his. Grissom lied down in bed and removed his glasses. Then, stealing one last look at his beautiful employee, he closed his eyes to settle in for as much sleep as he could fit in.


	3. Butterfly nets

"Get out of here Sanders! It's too early for your BS!" Nick growled as he threw one of his pillows across the room, sailing directly for the young CSI.

"Hey! First off, Gris wants us back at the scene in forty minutes max so you have to get up anyway. Second, it's not bullshit!" he said indignantly as he ducked the flying object. "I'm serious; he was gone when I woke up so I went looking for him. When I found him he was just leaving her room, looking mighty happy…" his voice trailed off suggestively.

"Damn Greg, you can't get _anyone_ to spend the night with you." Warrick laughed as he pulled a new shirt over his head.

Greg glared at him before dissolving into a smirk reminiscent of his lab days, "Well, in this particular case I'm not offended. Given the option, I'd choose to sleep with Sara over me as well…" The smirk transformed into a dreamy smile as Greg followed that train of thought. Then, just as quickly, it turned into a frown as he realized that that dream was no longer possible as the co-star of that scenario had apparently already been cast.

"Would you stop it already!" Nick barked and turned his back to the other two men. "He didn't sleep with Sara!" he concluded vehemently and buried his head beneath his remaining pillows to try and block out any further discussion on the matter.

Warrick wore a face of shock at the passionate response this rumour evoked from his friend. Warrick thought that maybe Nick had realized his crush on Sara after the Walter Gordon mess but he didn't think it was that serious to him. Plus Nick was normally more subtle about it.

"Look, Nick, I know exactly how you feel, man," Greg started, collapsing in one of the two armchairs in the room. He placed a hand over his heart, "I don't like it any more than you do; but is seems that our dear boss has finally seen how great Sara is and has claimed her for himself." Nick popped his head out from under the pillows and glared at Greg. He opened his mouth to lash out at him but Greg held up his other hand to stop him for a minute, "Don't shoot the messenger… Nick, we're in the same boat: I want her too."

Nick suddenly sat up right in his bed. He stared dangerously at the young man before him. "Sanders," he growled thickly, his jaw clenched and his fists gripping the bed sheets now pooled around his waist. "Out. Now."

Greg looked to Warrick for some support. Warrick smiled at him for reassurance but then gestured with a jerk of his head for Greg to get out of the room fairly quickly. "Yeah… alright…. I guess I'll catch up with you guys later." He quickly scrambled out of his chair and out the door.

"Dumb kid," Nick's grip relaxed slightly and he let his torso and head fall back onto his comfortable bed. He let out a frustrated sigh and closed his eyes before running a lazy hand down his face.

"Think maybe that anger's a little displaced?" Warrick asked genially.

"No; I think it found the right target. I just wasn't in the mood for his stupid lab gossip. As if anything were going to happen between those two at this point," he scoffed at the notion. "Honestly, I know that there's only the five of us out here, but can't he find any new material!" Nick ranted without lifting an eye-lid.

Warrick studied him out of the corner of his eye. "Nick," he spoke seriously, garnering his friend's attention.

"Hmm?" Nick opened his eyes, rolled over to face Warrick, and propped up his head to show that he was listening.

"I think this one may be a little more than gossip," he said carefully. An expression that was a mix of anger and sadness flickered across Nick's face, but it was quickly replaced by an obviously forced smirk.

"Not you too. I was over with Sara while you were on the phone with Tina--"

Warrick smirked at his friend, "Surprise, surprise."

"Point is, I was there and Gris wasn't. And I only left because she was falling asleep. Therefore, nothing could have happened because after I left her she would have gone right to sleep." Nick smiled a little more genuinely as he convinced himself that the idea of her and Grissom was ridiculous.

"That's right, I forgot. Once asleep, human's can never wake up," Warrick carried a sarcastic tone.

"You've obviously never seen Sara sleep," Nick smiled fondly.

Warrick's eyebrows jumped up to his hairline, "Have you?"

Nick's face lit up in a red glow. "Nothing sexual," he spoke quickly before pushing forward with his line of reasoning. "Look, Rick, she wouldn't… she didn't… you know… she's over him." He concluded with a shrug, as if that settled the matter.

"Oh yeah?" Warrick persisted. "She tell you that?"

"Well not in so many words… but she never told us when she used to like him either; we just knew. Just like now, I know she's over him. You can just tell, ya know?" Nick's argument was pretty flimsy but it was all he had to offer.

"I'm just saying, our girl's come a long way over the last little while, but she's always had a soft spot for the boss. I'm not sure that's ever really going to change." Warrick took a seat on his bed facing Nick as they spoke. He turned his tone into a gentler one as he continued, "I don't think Greg's making this up. Had you stopped snarling at him long enough to listen to him, you'd have seen that this new development upset him a little too."

"Why are you guys tacking this 'too' at the end? I'm not upset about this; first off because it doesn't affect me either way. And second: it isn't true."

Warrick rolled his eyes and leaned forward speaking once more in a sincere tone which drove Nick nuts, "I believe him, Nick."

"Well I don't!" he started getting worked up again. "She wouldn't do that; not now, and not even when she wanted him -- which she doesn't anymore!"

"Hey, I'm not saying this to try and hurt yo--"

"Who's hurt!" Nick snapped. "It doesn't affect me!"

"Clearly," he bit back in response. "I'm just saying: it's not impossible that it happened. I just want you—," he caught himself as Nick was about to protest again, "_us_… to be prepared should it happen to change status from rumour to fact."

Nick tossed the covers off of himself roughly and got out of bed. "Well, _we're_ in luck," he said as he picked up his overnight back from the foot of his bed and headed towards the bathroom. "'Cause I just bought a butterfly net." He stopped in the doorway and looked back at Warrick, who wore the puzzled expression Nick was hoping for. "You know, to catch the monkeys flying out of my ass when that happens! See, I am prepared!" With that he slammed the bathroom door shut. A minute later Warrick heard the shower start up.


	4. Watch him assume

A/N: The song at the beginning is "Banana Pancakes" by Jack Johnson.  
Okay folks, I think there's only going to be three more chapters and I have the next two written. I think I may actually finish this one ahead of schedule. If you knew me, you'd be amazed by this. Anyways, asalways, I hope you like it. Thanks for reading.

* * *

"Wakin' up too early, maybe we could sleep in? I'll make you banana pancakes; pretend like it's the weekend now…" Sara's soft voice filled the room as she unwrapped her hair from a towel and dried it a little more. She had already packed up her stuff, taken a shower, and applied some basic make-up. All that she had to do was brush out her hair, move the dresser back, then go eat breakfast and she'd be all set. She picked up her hair brush and briefly used it as a microphone before tangling it up in her hair. "And we could pretend it all the time. Can't you see that it's just rainin'? There ain't no need to go outside…" She was just finishing up her hair when a few quick knocks on her door interrupted her private concert. 

"'s open," she called, assuming it was Grissom coming back for his watch. He had left in it the bathroom after his shower. She ran the brush through her hair one last time and abandoned her song. She turned around and walked to her bed to retrieve his watch. Sara had brought it out with her so that she wouldn't forget it as well. She heard the door open and Grissom walk in. "I didn't think you'd notice so quickly," she smirked as she picked up the watch and tossed it underhand to him in the opening of the door. "You're lucky I let you have the shower first or you--" she stopped in mid-sentence as she finally saw the man who caught it. "Oh, h-hey Nick." He was starting down at the watch in his hands as if it had just bitten him. He tore his eyes away from the watch after a moment and attempted to catch Sara's.

"Grissom's?" he unnecessarily held up the item to show what he was talking about. His voice sounded hollow and he was able to keep a frown from his face, but couldn't manage a smile. He felt his heart fall into the pit of his stomach; even if it wasn't Grissom's, it was somebody's watch -- a male somebody.

"Uh, yeah… good guess." Sara darted her eyes nervously around the room, unable to match his gaze. Nick nodded his head morosely but said nothing. He switched his gaze back to the offensive item he was holding. Now it felt as if his stomach acid was slowly eating away at his heart. He had been so sure that Sander's was making it up!

Sara shifted her feet, clearly uncomfortable with the situation, mostly because of the hurt look that had crossed his face while he considered the watch. At least now she knew that he felt at least a little more than friendship for her… Sara felt the overwhelming need to explain the situation and to make it perfectly clear that nothing had happened between her and Grissom.

"It, uh, it's not what you're thinking," she took five long strides to end up directly in front of him. Nick once more shifted focus and looked her straight in the eye. This time she didn't look away.

"Grissom didn't spend last night with you?" his eyes pleaded with her and his voice sounded hopeful. He was silently begging her to deny Greg's rumours.

"Er, well, yes. He did--" Sara stumbled over her words as she watched Nick's eyes dim and his posture sag slightly. She felt horrible, as if she were admitting to cheating on Nick or murdering someone or something equally awful.

"I'm sorry," Nick said quickly, dropping his eyes and thrusting the watch out towards Sara. "That was rude. It's none of my business. Sorry." She mechanically took the item from his hands and shoved it away in her pocket. Once the watch was out of his possession Nick crossed his arms over his chest. He was closing off.

"No, it's okay. I--" Sara pushed forward, trying to explain herself.

"I just came by to set the dresser back in place." Nick changed the subject and finally managed to paste a smile onto his face. He's gotten pretty good at pretending. Nick moved past her and began tugging and sliding the dresser towards its initial position.

"Uh, thanks," she answered without thinking. "But about Gris--"

"He's already in the diner with Greg," Nick cut her off again. "Warrick and I were about to join them but then I remembered I promised to do this." He spoke between grunts and managed to shove the dresser back against the wall much faster than he had anticipated. "Warrick's just outside, if you're almost ready, we'll wait for you." He began walking towards the door.

Sara softened her tone and blocked his path to try and get him to listen. She reached out and touched his elbow. "Nick. You don't understand."

When he felt her hand he couldn't maintain his indifference. He let go of his fake smile. "You don't need to explain it to me; I get it," he replied softly.

"No, you don't. But if y--"

Nick pulled his elbow away. "'Rick!" he shouted, "Come 'ere!"

"Nick." She said more firmly. Her brows were furrowed and she sounded disappointed in him. He glanced down at his shoes then back up to her face. His face was hardened and he had cut off all trace of his feelings. "Would you stop--"  
"Hey guys, what's the hold up?" Warrick poked his head in.

Sara looked at Nick for a moment longer before making her way back to the dresser. She shook her head in frustration. _'He can be so pig-headed sometimes!'_ she thought angrily. Out loud she said, "Nothing. We can go." She threw the hair brush roughly into the end pouch of her bag and slung it over her shoulder. She stalked back towards her two co-workers.

Nick spoke before he could stop himself: "Yeah, we can't keep Gris waiting."

"Don't worry, he won't know the difference. He doesn't have his watch," Sara said harshly and pushed past him and out the door.

"You didn't," Warrick groaned as Sara stormed out of sight.

"Didn't what?" Nick replied gruffly, staring out the empty doorway.

Warrick squeezed his eyes shut. "Ask about Sander's rumour?" Nick didn't even have to answer. His guilty face screamed the answer. "Oh, Nick," he shook his head. "How offended was she?"

"She wasn't," he replied emotionless. "She didn't even deny it."


	5. Communication is the key

Predictably, breakfast for the five-member crew was not nearly as casual as it normally was. Grissom was back in a testy mood now that he was about to face the McDermott's case again. Greg was more sullen because when Sara handed back Grissom's watch, with the brief explanation that he had left it in her room, it confirmed his suspicions. He wasn't necessarily sad or unfriendly, but wasn't anywhere near as talkative or upbeat as he normally was. Nick was heartbroken, and Sara was upset that Nick was upset. The only one in a decent mood was Warrick and that was only because the last call with his wife had prevented him from falling into the funk of his co-workers. He had tried several times throughout the course of the meal to get some dialogue going, but the young trio affected by Grissom's sleepover would give short, simple answers and only seemed to direct them at Warrick, and Grissom himself simply didn't pay attention to any topic. A wave of relief flooded Warrick as the check came and the team headed back to the crime scene; had it taken any longer he probably would have fallen victim to the bad-mood bug going around.

The sulky foursome and Warrick worked the McDermott case as independently as this job would allow. That's not to say that their work had suffered: each member had learned when they were rookies that it's important to separate their personal lives from their professional ones. If they needed to talk out a theory to make sense of the evidence they didn't hesitate to hash it out with the closest colleague, just as that colleague put aside petty differences and engaged fully in the conversation. All that their sullen moods did was prevent unnecessary yapping as they processed their section of the house. Consequently, they worked through the house a bit faster than they normally would have, which left three of them with nothing to do but wait for results after five hours of investigating. Grissom and Warrick were tracking down some leads with the help of the local cops, they had been gone for almost two hours, and the remaining three did as much as they could before heading back to the motel; it was as good a time as any for a lunch break.

The ride back to the motel was fairly silent, once more only work was brought up. In the back seat, Greg had decided that staring out the window was the best way to ignore the tension in the car; both Nick and Sara still seemed angry at him. At some point at the crime scene Greg had attempted to make some jokes about Grissom's room switch – first making sure that Sara and Warrick were the only ones within hearing distance. His first, and only, joke was a fairly mild double entendre: "Hey Sar, I hear you just got a new position at CSI … Just underneath Grissom!" Warrick's eyes had gotten large as he choked back a laugh but Sara didn't find it so amusing. Under her death glare, Greg quickly apologized, "Sorry, but I've had that one saved for two years… I had to use it." Since then Sara had barely said more than two sentences to him, and then it was only because he had asked her about some blood spatter.

Nick was the driver on the way back and focused his attention strictly on the road before him, which was probably for the best since he didn't know the area very well. In the passenger seat, Sara switched her attention between the road and the driver. Her anger at Nick's childish reaction had dissipated during breakfast and she was now determined to set him straight. …she just had to wait until they had a little more privacy…

On the way back to the motel Nick spotted a food place called "Pita Factory", which he knew was one of Sara's favourites. Without a word he put on his indicator and pulled into the parking lot. "Greggo, you want a pita too or something else?"

"I'll take a pita," he said with a smile, glad to hear the use of his nick-name. That meant that Nick wasn't pissed off at him. Nick nodded, returning a small smile, and got into the drive-thru lane. Nick ordered their meals and paid with the company card then continued back to their motel.

As soon as Nick had put the car in park Greg hopped out and retired to his room. Having apparently made peace with Nick again, he had decided it was probably best to lay low for a while. He'd stay out of their way as long as possible just so that he could avoid any further hostility. He was mostly avoiding Sara. She's scary when she's angry.

Nick climbed out of the driver's seat and started towards his room as well when Sara spoke up, "Can I join you?" He looked over at her, considering it. For a minute Sara thought he was going to agree, seeing as his mood had slowly improved since their run-in this morning, but as his eyes searched her face she saw the sadness etched in his eyes.

"Not right now," he mumbled softly, almost sadly. He smiled apologetically and started to back away, "I bet Greg wouldn't object to your company though." He picked up some strain between them as well. He figured that meant that Warrick was right and Greg was upset by the sleepover as well, which was part of the reason Nick had decided to lay off of him… that and the fact that Greg had apparently not been lying…

"I didn't ask Greg," she said, following him to his door. "Nick, please? I want to talk to you."

Nick stuck his key in the door and fiddled with it until he heard it unlock. He turned the handle and opened the door an inch but paused in that position to look back at Sara. "What do you want to talk about?"

She gave him a "duh" look as she replied, "What do you think I want to talk about?"

"Then no," he said simply. "I'll see you later." He opened the door wider and entered. He attempted to shut the door behind him but Sara wouldn't allow it. She caught the door as it swung back towards her and pushed it open hard, knocking Nick back a few feet as well. She entered the room, discarded her pita on a table beside the entrance and kicked the door shut angrily. She stood there and stared Nick down wordlessly. "Can't we do this later? I'm really not in the mood," his voice sounded so weak and broken.

"No, I want to get this sorted out now," she said sternly.

Nick tossed his wrapped pita onto Warrick's bed and squared himself against Sara. "You know, they say good things come to those who wait… oh, but I guess you figured that out yesterday."

"If you'll just listen to me for a minute--" Sara decided to ignore the snide remark since he was clearly upset.

"No, Sara, I'm not interested," Nick cut her off.

Sara stood her ground, "Well, I'm not leaving until you hear me out."

"I forgot that rejection only encourages you," he mumbled.

"You can be such an ass. What? Do you think that if you insult me with enough wit then I'll just fall into your arms?"

He crossed his arms in front of him and choked out a defensive laugh. "I don't know what you're talking about, Sidle." He wasn't about to admit his feelings now and make a fool of himself.

"So that ugly creature that just spoke, that's you? Not jealousy?"

"Wow, you're not conceited," Nick went thick on the sarcasm.

"Wow, you're not in denial," Sara shot back without missing a beat.

He rolled his eyes at her and collapsed exaggeratedly on the foot of his bed, "Get over yourself."

"After you do," she crossed her arm and quirked an eyebrow at him, waiting for his comeback.

He was tempted to take another cheap shot at her but then thought better of it. She was right: this wasn't going to change the fact that she was with Grissom now. All he was doing was trying to hurt her because what she had hurt him… but she didn't deserve this. She had just following her heart; he shouldn't punish her for that. If anything, he should be happy that she would finally get the happily-ever-after ending that she deserved. Nick gave a loud sigh. When he spoke he sounded defeated, "Why are you doing this?" He waited a beat to control the waver in his voice before continuing, "What do you want from me?"

"I want you to listen to me and stop assuming that you know what happened," she said softly but passionately.

"I do know what happened. Greg told me. _You_ told me. I don't want to listen to anymore! I don't want to know the details!" He started to raise his voice and paused for a moment to calm down again. He didn't want to fight with her. He just wanted her to go away so that he could wallow in peace. "If you're just looking for a friend to talk to about it, I'm sorry, but I can't be him." He averted his eyes, staring determinedly at the bedspread beneath his legs trying to banish the emotions beginning to surface.

"Why?" Sara demanded, taking a slow step forward. Initially, she had been planning on just explaining herself and confessing her feelings... but after Nick had been such a jerk she decided to play with him for a bit, see if she could get him to say it first.

"Because I won't be happy for you and I won't have anything to say that you'll want to hear," he said evenly, still staring at the bed.

"Why?" she took another step.

"'Cause I can't be objective," he tried to side-step the questions without success. He knew he should have just stopped talking back at "I'm not in the mood."

"Why?" She was two feet away from him now.

He got louder and more adamant as he announced, "'Cause you shouldn't be with Grissom!"

"Why?" She got on her knees before him, tilting her head to try and get him to look at her again.

He cleared his throat. "You--" he glanced up as he started to speak and was startled by how close she had crept to him. He swallowed uneasily and started again, "You know why." Now he sounded pouty.

"Why?" she whispered in challenge.

His eyes flickered away from her for a minute as he debated just saying it out loud so that she'd leave him alone. _'What have I got to lose… well besides my job?'_ was his conclusion. "Because I--" his voice got caught in his voice. He cleared it and tried again. "'Cause—well..." He quickly ducked his head and claimed her lips with his own.

* * *

A/N: Pita Factory rocks! Try their chicken Caesar. 


	6. Watch the hip

One hand gripped the edge of his bed so he wouldn't lean too far forward and fall off of it, while the other traveled to Sara's face and stroked her cheek gently. Sara was still crouched before him, her hands now resting lightly on his thighs. Nick had no intentions of pulling away anytime soon; he wasn't going to stop until she pushed him away. This may be his only chance to kiss Sara Sidle and he wasn't going to end it willingly. His eyes were shut tightly, focusing all attention on the taste of her lips and the feel of her soft skin beneath his fingertips. This, kissing the boss's girl, could very well cost him his job… and so far it was well worth it. Hungrily, Nick decided to push his luck and traced her bottom lip with his tongue, requesting entrance. To his surprise she complied. Nick moved his hand from her face to the back of her neck to tangle in her hair as he deepened the kiss. His mind was wiped clean of all other thoughts.

Things quickly escalated as Sara stood up off the ground and wrapped her arms around Nick's neck. She decided immediately that standing wasn't that comfortable either and pushed Nick back on the bed and straddled his waist. Her hair fell, surrounding their faces like a curtain, further helping to block out the rest of the world. She settled her hands on top of his chest, feeling his heart beating a-mile-a-minute beneath her palm. His hands also switched positions. When the need to brace himself on the edge of the bed disappeared, that hand relocated to the small of Sara's back and then it slowly made its way up the back of her shirt. Next, as Nick realized that her lips weren't going anywhere, he removed his other hand from her hair and brought it down to grip her hip.

As Nick's mouth nipped, licked, and kissed it's way down her throat, having finally worked up the courage to stray from her lips -- he had been mildly afraid that if he broke the contact then he'd break the spell and she'd slap him and leave -- he squeezed her hip. His lips were halfway to her collarbone when he felt her painful yelp vibrate his workspace. She pulled back suddenly. His hands stilled as he stared up at her, perched on top of his middle. "I- I'm sorry," Nick said breathlessly. "Did I hurt you?" He added, to clarify that he was _not_ _sorry_ for the best kiss of his life.

She nodded a little. Concern instantly flooded Nick's handsome face. "See," she reached down to her waistband and gently brushed Nick's hand away as she pushed her jeans down an inch to reveal the bruise that the dresser had given her.

A charming smile pushed the concern out of the way. "I didn't do that," he said confidently. "However, I will kiss it better if you'd like." He reached out against and lightly brushed his thumb over top of the bruise, but didn't apply enough attention to hurt her. He looked up at her expectantly.

"I may take you up on that," she smirked. "Actually, this is your fault. I got this from the dresser that _you_ pushed into the middle of my room." Nick chuckled as she pointed an accusatory finger right in his face. She looked back at the ugly mark staining her skin. "It clipped me in the side as I scrambled to answer Gris' knocks. It really hurts." She had been attempting to extract some sort of prize from him but suddenly he took his hands off of her. She switched her gaze from her injured hip to his face to find him looking past her at the floor. She glanced over her shoulder but didn't see what he was looking at. "What?" she asked confused.

"I forgot," he said looking up at her again. "About Gris," he clarified as he saw her puzzled look. "Could you, uh, get off of me please?"

"No." Nick looked up at her oddly. "You started this thinking that I was with Grissom, and now you're stopping because… you still think that? I don't understand what's changed in the last, I dunno, ten minutes?" Sara attempted to put a time frame on the kiss. She wanted to do it justice but also didn't want to exaggerate; so she just guessed, figuring that he probably didn't know how long they had carried on either.

"Uhh, from where I'm sitting, _a lot_ has changed," he replied humourlessly. He carefully rolled her off of him. He backed away from her a bit and looked her straight in the eyes. "Look, Sar, I obviously want you. I've wanted this," he gestured quickly between them, "for longer than I care to admit; but I will not share you. I can't." He glanced down at his hands. "God, it kills me to say this, but if you're Gris' girl now, I just don't see how--"

"I'm not." Sara cut him off quickly. He looked back up into her face skeptically. "I'm not his girl, Nick. I'm not with Grissom."

Nick was dumbfounded. "Wait a minute… does he know that… last night… didn't mean anything to you?" he worded his sentence _very_ carefully.

"Yeah... Since nothing happened I'm pretty sure he knows that it meant nothing."

"Sar, com' on now." Nick spoke patronizingly, as if catching her in the midst of an obvious lie. "_You_ told me earlier that--"

"That Grissom slept in my room, which, yes, he did." Nick threw his hands up in the air in quick gesture to say that that-was-that. "Would you stop!" Sara commanded firmly, grabbing his hands from the air. "I didn't sleep _with_ him. He slept in the extra bed. You know, it is possible for me to be in the same room as a man and not have sex with him..." She spoke the last line tersely and Nick adopted a sheepish smile. She immediately softened as she took in the adorable embarrassed look on his face. "Nick, I fell asleep right away, completely separate from him and on the opposite side of the room, and dreamed about _you_."

Nick laughed out loud in relief. "So nothing happened?" he repeated, just to be sure. "You're not with Gris in any way, shape or form. There's no way that he can even mistake you as his girlfriend?" A grin so wide that it stretched his face appeared as he digested this new information.

"No way whatsoever," she confirmed. Nick quickly moved back next to Sara and threw his arms around her in a tight hug. "…unless he too takes Greg Sander's word above mine..." Sara accused in a light tone.

"Hey, now! You didn't once tell me that you didn't have sex with him!" Nick defended pulling back to look at her.

"'Cause you wouldn't let me!" she laughed incredulously. "You cut me off every time I tried!"

"I thought you were trying to break it to me gently or give me all the gory details or something," he made a face. "Either way, I wasn't about to listen to that. You should have just yelled 'nothing happened'… I would have heard that!"

"No, you wouldn't have," she said matter-of-factly, kissing his neck because she couldn't resist. "You didn't hear anything except your assumptions."

"I was only listening for the phrase 'nothing happened'," Nick explained.

"Oh," she laughed, "I guess it's my fault then."

"I guess it is…" he smirked and pulled her even closer, settling her on his lap. "I'm sorry I didn't listen earlier," he whispered softly into her ear and then gave her temple a lingering kiss.

She paused for a moment, savouring the feel of his arms surrounding her. "So, what now?" She just wanted to make sure that this meant that Nick was committing to something. Actually, she just wanted to hear another romantic speech; she hadn't heard those for a while.

"In what sense?" He looked over at the clock; they had been on break for nearly half an hour. He let his mind go play in the gutter as he considered what they could accomplish before they had to return to work.

"I mean, where does this leave _us_?" She questioned, pulling back to study his reaction.

"It leaves us on a bed, in a motel room, all alone with about half an hour to kill…" he waggled his eyebrows and dipped his head to pick up where he had left off on her throat. She laughed, vibrating his lips once more. "I can't work like this…" he playfully grumbled.

She ignored his complaint. "You know what I mean."

"I do," Nick turned serious. "And I will take whatever you're willing to offer. I'm crazy about you. I would love it if you would be my _exclusive_ girlfriend but if you don't want that yet, then we can date. If you want to go slower, I'm willing to do that too. It's your call; you know where I stand."

A slow grin spread across her face as he spoke. That's exactly what she was looking for. "I'm standing right beside you," she admitted proudly.

He closed his eyes and let the words roll over him. "I can't remember the last time I felt this happy," he said sincerely. He opened his eyes and leaned in to kiss her again. Once more, things heated up pretty quickly.

"Just be careful of my hip, it's still tender," she warned between kisses as her shirt flew off to hang out with Nick's on the floor.

"Sorry 'bout that," he replied as he arranged a charming smirk, "I'll find a way to make it up to you."

"Oh, I know you will," she grinned at the possibilities.


	7. God bless his little noisy sinuses

A/N: Well, I'm done now. I hope that you like it, and thanks so much for the great response. I really appreciate it; it's probably why I finished this so quickly (remember I'm talking quickly by my standards). I have another story in the works, and a few ideas on the go that I haven't put on paper yet. I hope you'll stick around to read those in the future. Thanks again for reading.  
And I got the spoilers from the GSR site "Playing With Fire." I tried to put the address there but apparently fanfic doesn't like it. There's a link to it from the crimelab.nl site.

* * *

For the second time in two days Grissom found himself standing nervously in front of Sara's motel room door. The team had wrapped up the case about two hours ago and after a quick meal, they had returned to the motel to catch a nap before heading home. Grissom hadn't even tried to sleep in the same room as Greg this time; once he had finished the necessary paperwork he had just grabbed his pillow and headed over to Sara's, carefully ignoring Greg's giggles. 

"Hey Gris," Sara whispered, opening the door a crack and sticking her head through. Once more she had to scramble to the door, this time with the added obstacle of pulling on some clothes, but managed without injury.

"Hello Sara," he greeted. He was a lot earlier than he had been the last time. He figured that his early arrival would guarantee them some time to chat before heading off to bed. While one of his motives was getting a sound sleep, he also felt terrible about taking his anger out on her earlier and wanted to clear the air. Grissom coughed nervously. He wasn't comfortable talking about personal stuff, so he tried to act with an air of authority to make it sound more business related. "I need to talk to you about something."

"Oh? Abou—about what?" Sara stuttered, still sotto voce, as her face registered a moment of panic. _'Does he know about Nick?'_ she wondered, cursing the building's thin walls and absently drawing the door tighter to her body to reveal less of the room behind it. _'I knew Greg would hear us!'_

"…About my attitude earlier…" Grissom replied slowly, tilting his head inquisitively as he noticed her bizarre reaction to the innocent request. "…Sara, is there something you want to tell me?"

"Not a thing, Gris," she replied quickly. A little _too_ quickly in Grissom's opinion, so he just looked at her, waiting patiently for her to cave. His scrutinizing gaze made her very uncomfortable. _'What if I put my shirt on backwards or inside out?'_ she worried but refused to look for fear of tipping him off further. _'Oh no! What if he notices I'm not wearing a bra?'_ She crossed her arms in from of her chest self-consciously, making sure that a firm foot at the back of the door would still keep it securely against her. After another twenty seconds Sara broke the silence just so he'd stop studying her. "Fine," she sighed dramatically. "I may, or may not, have done something of questionable morals in order to repay Sander's for something he did earlier…" Sara offered a vague lie. "But, I suggest that you don't ask me any further questions about it otherwise you'll have to testify later." She finished it off with a good-natured wink, attempting to move past the subject as soon as possible

Grissom groaned and was about to scold her but then thought better of it: "I'll pretend I didn't hear that... You're just lucky he cost me a new species of insect…" Sara gave a puzzled glance but decided not to question her obviously over-worked and extremely tired boss. "So, can I come in?" He gestured towards the room she was currently blocking, calling her attention to the pillow once more gripped in his hand.

"Oh, I'm sorry Gris, the spare bed's already taken. Nick's here. He, uh, he came over once we got back from the restaurant and he _just_ fell asleep a couple of minutes ago," she tried to restrain her blush so that Grissom wouldn't suspect anything out of the ordinary.

"I see," he said, slightly surprised but not displaying a hint of it. "Hence the whispering," he added as it suddenly all made sense.

"Yeah," she gave a shy smile, "I don't want to wake him. So, could we talk out here?" Without waiting for an answer she flipped the deadbolt out so it would prevent the door from shutting all the way -- and consequently lock her out -- and stepped outside with her supervisor. She walked a few feet from the door before she allowed her voice to reach her normal volume. "Sorry 'bout the bed… but this means that Warrick has a space for rent," she gave a guilty smile.

"Not for long," Grissom smiled back. "Anyway, I won't keep you much longer. I just wanted to apologize for my behaviour earlier; it was not my intention to take my frustrations out on you. I've always prided myself for my detachment from cases, but there was something about this one…" his voice trailed off thoughtfully. Sara remained silent, partly because she didn't know what to say and partly because it looked like he wouldn't hear her anyway. "Sorry," he mumbled when he snapped back to earth and saw her worried and awkward expression. "Irregardless, my attitude was inexcusable. Just… disregard any negative behaviour I may have inadvertently inflicted upon you in the last couple of days. You didn't deserve it. You were just the unfortunate target of my aggravation."

Sara struggled in vain to hold a serious face. "You're making an apology, not a field report," an amused smile broke the surface. "You don't have to talk so formally." Grissom opened his mouth but didn't say anything and promptly closed it again. He just looked confused. "What I mean is that nobody says 'disregard any negative behaviour I may have inadvertently inflicted upon you'… well besides you, I guess. All you have to do is apologize; it doesn't have to be fancy or elegant or politically correct…"

"So you would just have me say, 'I'm sorry'?" he seemed baffled.

"Well, some sort of explanation is required, just so that the person knows what you're talking about. So, next time just try, 'Sorry I was an ass to you earlier.' It's simple and straight to the point. It makes it seem more sincere," her smile widened at the surprised look on his face when she inadvertently called him an ass.

"Alright then," Grissom got over his shock and spoke in a clear poised voice, "Sara, I am sorry that I was an ass to you earlier."

Sara immediately snorted with laughter. Somehow he had managed to turn that sentence into sounding formal. "No, I was wrong. That doesn't work for you," she giggled as she replayed the apology in her head. "Stick with the formal approach."

He let out a sigh of relief, "Good. That's probably the most uncomfortable sentence I've ever said." A half smile graced his face.

"It was just as weird to listen to," Sara assured laughing. They stood in a comfortable silence for a moment, each thankful that whatever awkwardness had descended over them during their time in Vegas seemed to have finally gotten bored and moved on. Finally, they were back to their easy friendship.

"Well, I'd better go and make sure that Warrick will let me bunk with him tonight…" Grissom motioned to the room a few doors down.

"You should probably give him another half an hour… you know how honeymooners are…" Sara borrowed one of Nick's lines with a faint smile. Gris nodded and she began to turn away.

Grissom stopped her. "So you forgive me, right? For being unreasonably critical and taking my anger out on you?" He just wanted to make sure.

"Yes, Gris, we're good. I know you didn't mean it," she smiled.

"Good." He shifted his pillows in his hand and his face twisted into a smug smirk as he seemed to be debating what to say next. Sara wasn't sure she wanted to hear what was coming so she attempted to end it there, after all there was a nice warm Texan body to curl up to just a few feet away.

"Well, if that's all, I think I'm going to head off to bed too. It's been a _long_, _exhausting_ night," she added an obnoxious yawn at the end for show.

"Yes it has, and more tiring for some than others" his smirk grew larger, apparently having settled his internal argument. A worried look flashed across Sara's face. "Actually, now that I think about it, it's not so surprising that Nick dozed off so quickly; he seemed dead tired after lunch… not that he wasn't in good spirits." Grissom spoke pointedly to her and Sara felt her face heating up. "Great, actually, in comparison to his mood when Warrick and I left you guys." He paused and smiled knowingly for a moment, secretly delighted by her reaction. "Well, I won't keep you any longer. Looks like whatever zapped Nick of his energy had an effect on you as well. Goodnight Sara." He began to walk away.

"You know, you shouldn't tell a woman when she looks tired," she called to his back. "It's just the polite way of saying she looks like crap."

Grissom stopped, chuckling, and directed his next comments to her from over his shoulder. "I never said you looked tired or 'like crap'. Far from it." Again, a smug look dominated his features, "You look radiant, Sar, Love suits you… both of you, actually." Her mouth hung open in surprise, partly because her socially inept boss had figured it out so quickly, partly because of the uncharacteristic compliment that accompanied it, but mostly because of the use of the l-word. It was one that she dare not speak out loud yet, even if it may apply. A squeak was the only thing that she was able to force out of her throat and Grissom openly laughed at her. "The hickey was the biggest give-away," he called as he began heading back to talk with Greg for a bit longer to give Warrick the suggested amount of privacy. "G'night," he repeated as he disappeared behind the other hotel door.

Sara clamped a hand over the left side of her neck, which seemed to be Nick's favourite, and headed quickly back to the safety of her room. She walked into the bathroom and laughed in disbelief at the impressive mark Nick had left on her body. She smiled as she ran a finger lightly over top of it before going back into the main room. She'd worry about hiding it from Warrick and Greg later, right now the only thing she wanted to do was go to bed.

Quietly, she traded in her poor attempt at dressing for Nick's button-up shirt from the floor and climbed into the bed beside him. He stirred slightly as she snuggled her body up next to his. He opened his eyes just enough to see her smiling apologetically up at him. Nick smiled sleepily in return, wrapped an arm around her waist to pull her closer, kissed her forehead, and then drifted back off to sleep. As she lay there waiting for sleep to claim her as well, listening to the soothing combination of Nick's strong heart beat and even breathing, Sara made a mental note to do something nice for Greg when they got up. _'God bless his little, noisy sinuses,'_ she thought as she shut her eyes once more and joined Nick in her dreams.

THE END.


End file.
